Better Practice Social Licence Guideline + Review
Improving co-existence with agriculture
The Better Practice Social Licence Guideline has been developed as part of our range of #BetterTogether Landholder + Community Social Licence initiatives. It’s focused on opportunities for transmission and renewable energy businesses to improve co-existence and shared value for agricultural landholders through transparent commitments and independent accountability.
Why it matters?
Our Signatories recognise that renewable energy and transmission projects, as well as the maintenance of existing infrastructure, can impact the agricultural operations, lives and livelihoods of agricultural landholders. They also understand that they have a responsibility to recognise and minimise these impacts and work towards shared value outcomes for everyone.
The co-design and development of the Energy Charter’s Better Practice Social Licence Guideline was critical to developing a deeper understanding of:
- The ways renewable energy infrastructure impacts agricultural landholders and their communities
- The principles that underpin how to build and maintain social licence for impacted landholders and communities
- Practical opportunities to minimise impacts and deliver shared value during the planning, construction, operation and decommissioning of renewable energy infrastructure.
By validating impacts and identifying opportunities to improve outcomes for agricultural landholders, the Better Practice Guideline supports energy businesses to better understand and act on, the factors that contribute to building trust and maintaining social licence with agricultural landholders and their communities.
The Better Practice Guideline is also intended to support agricultural representatives, landholders and host communities to raise and discuss known impacts and work constructively with transmission businesses to achieve shared value outcomes. Importantly, in addition to clear commitments there is also an independent accountability process.
Better Practice Social Licence Guideline + Review
Walking the talk on better practice
We believe in doing what we say we’ll do. That’s why our Signatories have committed to putting the Better Practice Guideline into action – and being open about their progress along the way. Through regular independent accountability review, we can all see what’s working well and what needs more attention. It’s all about learning and improving together.
Our first check-in
In 2023, six Industry Collaborators (AusNet Services, ElectraNet, Marinus Link, Powerlink Qld, TasNetworks and Transgrid) rolled up their sleeves to tackle 37 key actions from the Better Practice Guideline.
A year later, in June 2024, we brought in Nine Creeks Consulting to take an independent look at how everyone was doing. They talked with community members and transmission teams, reviewed progress reports and gave practical suggestions on how to keep improving. The review was led by Phillip Guthrie who brings valuable experience in regional development and agricultural technology to the table.
Looking ahead
Five of our Industry Collaborators – AusNet Services, Marinus Link, Powerlink Qld, TasNetworks and Transgrid – are committed to this journey for another 18 months (July 2024 – December 2025).
In 2024, our Community Outcomes Group and Industry Collaborators got together to digest what we learned from the first review. Through a collaborative workshop, we identified 20 Priority Commitments to focus over the next year.
Signatories have committed to another independent review to see how we’re tracking at the end of 2025, with regular quarterly updates to the Ag + Energy Social Licence Roundtable to keep us accountable.
Ag + Energy Collaboration
Every stage of this #BetterTogether initiative has been a collaboration – from designing the landholder survey, to analysing the results and developing the Better Practice Guideline.
Our dedicated Community Outcomes Group (COG) included representation from the Ag Energy Taskforce, Australian Energy Infrastructure Commissioner, Bundaberg Regional Irrigators Group, National Farmers’ Federation, National Irrigators Council, RE-Alliance, Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association, Queensland Farmers’ Federation and Victorian Farmers Federation.
A special thank you to all COG members for their knowledge, insights and commitment to developing this Better Practice Guideline.
Our Industry Collaborators included Energy Charter Full Signatories AusNet Services (VIC), Powerlink Queensland (QLD), TasNetworks (TAS) and Transgrid (NSW), and #BetterTogether Collaborators ElectraNet (SA) and MarinusLink.
Our research partner was KPMG Australia.
Better Practice Engagement
Engaging meaningfully with landholders and affected communities is essential the putting the social licence principles of procedural fairness and partnership into practice.
The Better Practice Guide to Landholder and Community Engagement underpins the Better Practice Social Licence Guideline. It was launched at a National Farmers Federation event on 15 September 2021 and co-designed by the National Farmers Federation, Queensland Farmers Federation, NSW Farmers Federation, Victorian Farmers Federation, AgForce Queensland, Cotton Australia and Energy Charter signatories APA Group, Powerlink Queensland, TransGrid with support from Essential Energy and Jemena.
The Better Practice Guide sets out what landholders and communities can expect when engaging about new or existing energy assets and aims to:
- Share the high-level principles that help guide engagement with landholders and communities
- Assist in the management of impacts
- Guide any mutual value opportunities which may exist
Its primary purpose is to encourage better engagement and outcomes for landholders and communities and applies to a range of different projects and assets including new or existing electricity transmission lines or substations and new or existing gas pipeline assets i.e. transmission lines and gas pipelines.
Gerard Reilly, General Manager Communications, Customer & Engagement, Powerlink Queensland said the Better Practice Guide will be a vital resource for communities and the energy industry.
Want to learn more about this #BetterTogether initiative?
If you would like to learn more about the Energy Charter’s Better Practice Social Licence Guideline, or the research project that informed it, please reach out to Heather Wagland, Director, Energy Transition.